Fire rips through Edinburgh caravan site as area sealed off with 'gas cylinders exposed'

A fire ripped through a caravan site in the south of Edinburgh this afternoon, with eye-witnesses saying an area was sealed off due to gas cylinders being exposed.
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Firefighters were called to the site at the end of Burndene Drive, close to the Burger King at Straiton Retail Park, at about 1:30pm this afternoon.

A Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) spokesperson said four fire engines were still at the scene just after 7pm – but the blaze was now under control. The spokesperson confirmed they had not received any reports of injuries.

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SFRS said the blaze started in a shed before spreading to nearby “static homes” and that there were seven fire engines, including specialist command, at one point earlier in the evening.

A thick plume of black smoke billows up above the caravan site in Straiton this afternoon.A thick plume of black smoke billows up above the caravan site in Straiton this afternoon.
A thick plume of black smoke billows up above the caravan site in Straiton this afternoon.

Eye-witness Lee Simpson said he also overheard others at the scene saying the fire started in a shed, before spreading to a fence and a nearby home.

He said: "I saw one property which has definitely gone but it looks like at least three properties could be gone now. I think the most it could take out is about six properties but it depends how quickly they get it under control."

Mr Simpson said the fire could spread easily because there is only about 5ft between each property in this part of the site.

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And he says part of the caravan site was sealed off due to the presence of gas cylinders outside people’s mobile homes.

Thick black smoke could be seen from Loanhead.Thick black smoke could be seen from Loanhead.
Thick black smoke could be seen from Loanhead.
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Fire breaks out in Edinburgh caravan site as plume of thick black smoke billows ...

Residents were seen standing on Lomond Walk, the next street along from Burndene Drive, as the flames engulfed one of the homes.

Mr Simpson, who lives just across the road in the Burnbank estate, said it appeared firefighters were struggling to contain the fire earlier in the afternoon and that no hydrant – a port to connect a hose to the water mains – was available on the unserviced site.

Pictures from the scene show firefighters using hose reel jets to extinguish the flames inside one of the homes.

Mr Simpson said police were also in attendance but neither SFRS or police were able to provide any details on how the fire started.